An Explanation About Dementors
by Silver Tidal Wave
Summary: Severus explains to Lily what Dementors are.


The late afternoon light shone through the leaves and onto the two young children lying by the riverbank. The young boy was sitting up and gazing at the young red-headed girl lying out on the grass, or more precisely, on his jacket, which he had taken off for her when she felt that the grass was still wet. She had her eyes closed, and was basking in the suns warmth. The boy was just content to just sit there and look at her for however long he could. For the boy loved this girl, though she didn't know it. He loved her fiery red hair, which was now spread around her face like a halo, and he loved that she had a fiery personality to match. He loved the sprinkling of golden freckles across her nose, her pouty pink lips, and -even though he couldn't see them at the moment- her sparkling emerald green eyes.

"Sev?" The girl asked softly with her eyes still closed, and the boy's heart jumped when she said his name.

He grinned. "Yeah Lily?"

"What are De-men-tors?"

Severus hesitated, running a hand through his unruly black hair. "Why do you wanna know about them?" he asked laughingly, moving a little closer to her. Lily opened her eyes, blinking a little at the bright sunlight and propped herself up on her elbow, looking down at the grass. "Well…you mentioned them earlier, when you were explaining where bad wizards go. You said that no one wants to mess with a De-men-tor, and that that's why they were chosen to guard Azkaban."

Sev gave an uneasy laugh, running his hand through his hair again. "You know Lily, they aren't really the nicest thing to talk about. I get shivers just thinking about them."

Lily looked up at him then, and Sev's breath caught in his throat. The sunlight was hitting her skin just right, making it look like she was glowing, and her deep emerald eyes sparkled at him as she smiled, her red hair tumbling around her shoulders. "Sev, I can handle it" she said, unconsciously reaching out and placing a small hand in one of his.

The children didn't notice for a moment as they sat there, though when they did they instantly pulled away, blushing and looking away from each other, mumbling apologies.

"Please Sev?" Lily begged, pouting at him and looking at him with tearful eyes. Sev closed his eyes for a moment and opened them again. He was able to look at her for half a second before he gave in. "Oh alright, fine" he sighed, though he was grinning. Lily giggled and lay back down, though she kept looking at him with wide, curious eyes.

Severus sighed again and ran a hand through his hair as he tried to get his thoughts together. He tried not to look at Lily as he did. "Well they…Dementors…they aren't very nice" he began lamely, blushing when he realised how stupid he sounded.

Lily laughed. "Well, I kinda figured that Sev" she giggled, turning onto her side so she could look at him, but he kept his eyes firmly fixed on the rippling water of the lake.

"I'm trying to figure out how to explain it" he said, laughing a little himself. They were both quiet for a few moments before Severus spoke again.

"Dementors…they're soulless, evil things. They take...pleasure in other peoples despair and sadness." Severus sighed and continued to speak. "They…make you relive all your worst memories, make you think the worst thoughts. They take away all your happiness and if they get the chance, they will feed on you until they make you into something like themselves. As I said before, soulless and evil"

Everything was quiet for a moment, and Severus turned to look at Lily, afraid that he may have frightened her. She was lying down quietly, staring up at the sky. She didn't look scared, but like she was just thinking about what he had said. She blinked at then looked at him with her enchanting eyes, and Severus found himself unable to look away. "What do Dementors look like?" she said quietly.

Severus swallowed, and forced himself to stutter as he looked into her eyes. "Well…they're rather tall…and really skinny, and they look like a skeleton wearing a tattered black robe, though you can't see it's face because of the hood" Sev frowned. "You don't want to see what's under a Dementor's hood."

"Do you know what's under a Dementors hood?"

Severus shook his head and shuddered, and Lily once again took her hand in his and squeezed his fingers. Severus squeezed her fingers back gratefully. "No…and I sincerely hope I never find out"

"Why?"

"The Dementor…" Severus swallowed. "The Dementor only lowers its hood to use its last and most powerful weapon. It's called the Dementors Kiss"

Lily's eyes were wide, with both fright and curiosity. She looked like she had didn't want to hear anymore, but she couldn't help herself. "What's a Dementors Kiss?" she whispered.

"Well…I…there must be some kind of mouth or something under there because th-they clamp their jaws around the mouth of the poor sod and…and suck out his soul"

Lily gasped. "Y-you mean they _kill-?_"

Severus shook his head and gave an odd sort of grimace. "No. You can still live you know, if your heart and your lungs and brain and stuff are still working, but…you'll have no sense of self anymore. You'll just…be _there_. An empty shell"

Lily was quiet for a moment, looking up at the sky and digesting what Severus had told her. Severus just kept looking at her, worried that he might have said too much, but he was surprised when he felt her fingers squeeze his again, and she was looking at him with glistening eyes. "That's horrible" she whispered. "Does…does that happen often?"

Snape was furious at himself, hating that he had upset her. He wanted to take her in his arms and comfort her, and make her forget everything he had said.

"No, no" he said hastily, lying down close beside her and turning to her, so that their noses were almost touching. "Someone would have to be really, really dangerous for that to happen to them. And the Dementors need special permission or whatever before they can to do that to anyone, so don't worry" he tried to smile reassuringly at her.

Lily smiled back, and to his surprise she snuggled up to him, resting her head on his chest and wrapping her arms around him. Sev's eleven-year-old heart started pounding frantically in his chest, and he tentatively wrapped his arms around her small frame, hardly able to believe that it was happening. That he was holding her warm body close to his in the way he had always hoped to.

"You wouldn't let them hurt me, would you Sev?" Lily asked quietly, raising her head a little.

Just the thought of Dementors even coming near Lily made Severus clamp his teeth together and tighten his arms around her waist, pulling her closer to him. "Lily" he said gruffly, pulling her face up and making her look directly into her eyes. "I wouldn't even let them go _near _you, got that?"

Lily looked into his eyes for a moment, like she was trying to figure out if he was telling the truth. The she smiled, and before he realised what was happening, she had reached up and kissed him lightly on the cheek. "Thanks Sev" she whispered, before placing her head on his chest again and closing her eyes.

Sev's mouth stretched into a grin as his cheeks flushed red, and he wrapped her even tighter in his arms, snuggling closer to her. "You're welcome Lily. I'll always be here for you" he whispered, reaching a hand up to stroke her cheek.

And for the rest of the afternoon, Severus Snape could have been the happiest eleven-year-old wizard in the world.


End file.
